r/law • u/Imaginary_Cow_6379 • Feb 03 '25

Legal News DOJ Says Trump Administration Doesn’t Have to Follow Court Order Halting Funding Freeze

https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/doj-says-trump-administration-doesnt-have-to-follow-court-order-halting-funding-freeze/
26.0k Upvotes

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288

u/brickyardjimmy Feb 03 '25

Yes they do.

113

u/RichFoot2073 Feb 03 '25

How do you propose anyone stops him?

286

u/ghostfaceschiller Feb 03 '25

People are still in heavy denial about how bad the reality of the situation is, and how fundamentally different it is than how they’ve previously thought about politics and government in their lives before.

98

u/isitatomic Feb 03 '25

This needs to be plastered everywhere.

It’s no longer a government, it’s a REGIME. The new edict is literally obey or die—by the hand of MAGA zealots, poverty, or Iranian agents.

29

u/[deleted] Feb 03 '25

[deleted]

4

u/whomad1215 Feb 03 '25

half of the house and senate is on board with it, that's another piece of the problem

40+ years ago, they'd probably be doing something to stop it

33

u/RichFoot2073 Feb 03 '25

I’m sure a stern finger waggling is in order. Again.

9

u/L3g3ndary-08 Feb 03 '25

You also mustn't forget a strongly worded letter. That's key here. Letters stop so much.

1

u/StopLookListenNow Feb 03 '25

Senator Susan Collins?

2

u/choffers Feb 03 '25

I'm sure she finds this very concerning

1

u/Inspect1234 Feb 03 '25

Where Susan C when you need her, amirite?

12

u/ftc_73 Feb 03 '25

Don't worry though, there are plenty of peaceful protests planned. That will learn em.

6

u/ghostfaceschiller Feb 03 '25

Are there? I haven’t seen many.

At this point last time, we had already had the Women’s march in DC, one of the largest protests ever.

Lots of larpers posting online about how we need a “revolution” tho.

I guess they figure someone else will do it for them

7

u/[deleted] Feb 03 '25

There have been many protests and the overwhelming response to them I’ve seen from Dems and people allegedly wanting to fight back against trump is: “oh gee those guys slightly slowed down traffic, that isn’t the way to protest guys, do it in the wilderness out of the public eye or email your Republican senators junk box if you really wanna make a difference”

Unfortunately 40% of America seems to support this. And out of the remaining 60%, if it were ever to get to a point of widespread protests and strikes, the majority of them would turn on the protestors the second one guy is late to work or the second one window gets smashed

1

u/sirixamo Feb 03 '25

Yes a protest in LA is probably not going to get the legislatures from Southern states to give 2 shits. They are going to LOVE making LA suffer. So maybe try somewhere where it impacts the people making the decision you don't like?

-7

u/ghostfaceschiller Feb 03 '25

Congrats on finding a way to blame democrats. It’s really proved to be a great strategy for us all.

Bonus points for, what I can tell, making up a fake situation to blame them for.

Where have these many protests been which Dems are supposedly complaining about?

I live in the third largest city in America and have seen 1 protest of ~20 people. Did not see any Dems angry about it

1

u/Quercubus Feb 04 '25

Wednesday. Every State Capital.

-1

u/socialistRanter Feb 03 '25

Ok, go storm the whitehouse if you think the protests aren’t good enough.

Invite some friends, what’s stopping you except commenting?

5

u/Katerwaul23 Feb 03 '25

People have shown that they are fundamentally unable to appreciate how bad the reality of the situation is. They've had plenty of time but keep leaving us with nothing but thoughts and prayers. They have proven they are the lobotomized sheep the wolves want them to be.

Why. Won't. Canada. INVADE?!

2

u/YouWereBrained Feb 03 '25

Could not state it any better. 🤜🏼🤛🏼

1

u/[deleted] Feb 04 '25

Oh, we're just getting started boys. I can not WAIT to be reading Reddit this time next year!

1

u/[deleted] Feb 04 '25

[deleted]

0

u/ghostfaceschiller Feb 04 '25

They put out an OMB memo about halting funding.

The memo was challenged in court.

So they rescinded the memo and said, in an informal manner, “but we are still doing that”

This is the DOJ arguing to the court that the administration can still make whatever funding changes they want, bc the lawsuit specifically challenged the OMB memo, and that memo was technically rescinded.

52

u/One-Builder8421 Feb 03 '25

Aim better

5

u/[deleted] Feb 03 '25

🤏

3

u/viotix90 Feb 04 '25

Those who make Bernie impossible, make Luigi inevitable.

1

u/silverum Feb 03 '25

Saint Luigi, is that you?

1

u/etherdesign Feb 04 '25

Destroying millions of peoples lives, it's a bold strategy Cotton let's see if it pays off for em.

35

u/Strenue Feb 03 '25

Yup. Too late for that. Civil action is needed

21

u/Fionaelaine4 Feb 03 '25

Financial blackout. It’s the only peaceful option left.

64

u/Sebvad Feb 03 '25

“Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable."

18

u/Fionaelaine4 Feb 03 '25

100%. Unfortunately, I think violence is going to happen in the near future but if we can do a peaceful financial protest first maybe we can curb it a little bit. If half of adult Americans cut their spending the week of Presidents’ Day we could remove billions in revenue.

11

u/Count_Backwards Competent Contributor Feb 03 '25

Everyone removing their money from the banks sent a pretty strong message 100 years ago

8

u/Slackballed Feb 03 '25

Got bad news for you fella

https://reason.com/2025/01/31/the-government-says-money-isnt-property-so-it-can-take-yours/

8

u/Imaginary_Cow_6379 Feb 03 '25

Wow! That seems like it really should have gotten more attention. 😳 wtf!?

5

u/FailsTheTuringTest Feb 03 '25

That article bears approximately zero relation to the filing it's criticizing (which is par for the course at Reason, who are anti-tax ideologues). The government was basically rebutting a Randian "taxation is theft!" assertion there, not proclaiming that they can take your money whenever they feel like it.

Then again, the article linked in the OP also misrepresents and misunderstands the filing it's criticizing, so I guess what's one more, right?

3

u/fox-mcleod Feb 03 '25

Which will enable him to declare martial law and make it legitimate.

6

u/Fionaelaine4 Feb 03 '25

How so? Violence would but not refusing to spend money for a week

1

u/fox-mcleod Feb 03 '25

Yes. That’s what I was referring to. Your call for economic non-cooperation is a good idea.

0

u/Fionaelaine4 Feb 03 '25

Phew! I just saw this article though- can they just take the money anyways?

https://reason.com/2025/01/31/the-government-says-money-isnt-property-so-it-can-take-yours/

0

u/fox-mcleod Feb 03 '25

Oh lord…

0

u/Bunerd Feb 03 '25

The rich are going to pocket all the money and we'll just be here continuing to work like the Who's on Christmas, and that's how communism hits.

1

u/[deleted] Feb 04 '25

[removed] — view removed comment

1

u/Fionaelaine4 Feb 04 '25 edited Feb 04 '25

I think we really should do it. One whole week Presidents’ Day is 2/17 and it’s after the Super Bowl and Valentine’s Day where people feel the need to spend so people would want to take a break from spending anyways. I don’t think we can sit back and do nothing anymore

1

u/[deleted] Feb 04 '25

[removed] — view removed comment

1

u/Fionaelaine4 Feb 04 '25 edited Feb 04 '25

How do we get the word out? That’s the biggest hurdle

I also think we should all start calling Trump Elon’s bitch because that might annoy him enough to remove him

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1

u/the_friendly_dildo Feb 03 '25

I'm not saying we shouldn't protest, but everyone suggesting that a general strike of some kind is going to work, is being sorrowfully naive. Let me put in perspective that Trump has already put it front and center that he understands that the tariffs he intends to implement will be painful yet he appears unrelenting in his view on them. Tariffs don't just hurt regular folks, they'll hurt nearly all businesses as well because they too will have to purchase products with inflated prices.

Trump appears to not give a single shit in how he will be perceived going forward by people or businesses and he's having Elon do all the dirtiest of the work so he can just pardon him whenever or if ever that were even necessary. So the only sway we possibly have is getting Democratic and a few Republican legislators that aren't absolute goons to back impeachment. You might be able to peal off a few but most that would be willing, would be too scared that it would fail with them appearing as a traitor to their team/cult after the fact.

Lets say for a moment that impeachment does succeed. What then? He sits in the White House and makes an announcement telling congress to fuck themselves. What then?

This is an incredibly perilous point in history and we have so few options.

1

u/Fionaelaine4 Feb 03 '25

I told my family at thanksgiving that I think we could be seeing a civil war. I hope I’m wrong.

10

u/f8Negative Feb 03 '25

Finish Shermans job.

8

u/NittanyOrange Feb 03 '25

Send in the US Marshalls

12

u/qalpi Feb 03 '25

They're from Trump's DOJ

11

u/SuperFlyAlltheTime Feb 03 '25

I feel like this is gonna end in a standoff...this might be the spark on the kindling, that is gonna send this country into chaos.

23

u/Puzzleheaded-Call335 Feb 03 '25

Which will be absolutely necessary and unavoidable, but it still means Russia won. Putin played America like a goddamned fiddle.

9

u/NittanyOrange Feb 03 '25

Well, it's either that or allow blatant ignoring of the Art. III branch. Given those options... send in the Marshalls.

6

u/TheNetworkIsFrelled Feb 03 '25

The right wing is salivating over the possibility of violence.

They want to relitigate the civil war, and with Putin's backing, they will probably get their wish.

8

u/SuperFlyAlltheTime Feb 03 '25

I hope my leftie friends are taking precautions though. At least something for protection at this point.

3

u/TittySlappinJesus Feb 03 '25 edited Feb 16 '25

I think the mold in my fridge may have cheese on it.

4

u/SpareManagement2215 Feb 03 '25

honestly? it's up to the states, citizens, and judicial system. and that's shaky at best because some of these decisions seem to have been done with a desire specifically TO provoke states or citizens to action to get lawsuits to SCOTUS for a ruling that would be favorable to executive power (example being these objectively illegal firings of federal workers).

7

u/sjj342 Feb 03 '25

Impeachment

19

u/PrinceZordar Feb 03 '25

Because that worked so well the last two times.

25

u/sjj342 Feb 03 '25

That's why you're not supposed to support authoritarian parties in elections

4

u/Wolfy4226 Feb 03 '25

I didn't.

15

u/Artistic-Cannibalism Feb 03 '25

Have you already forgotten his last term? We've tried impeachment twice but it doesn't work unless the Republican party gets on board and they won't.

Impeachment has no value besides being a delaying tactic

-6

u/sjj342 Feb 03 '25 edited Feb 03 '25

No but I think it could possibly be used to get Trump to resign once his government starts to collapse

ETA still down voted at this point but LMAO he's already blowing in the winds on tariffs getting pushed around, he's going to end up humiliated and dragged by everyone soon enough

13

u/Artistic-Cannibalism Feb 03 '25

Men like Trump don't resign, they grab more power.

-2

u/sjj342 Feb 03 '25

He doesn't want power he wants to golf and feel special, Republicans can give him some sort of golden parachute

With his mental and physical health issues plus general aging/instability I don't think he can make it 4 years

Once he's thoroughly humiliated and pushed around by other countries I think he might want out at some point

9

u/alpha309 Feb 03 '25

He will resign on the same day that I, a human male, give birth to a giraffe.

1

u/the_friendly_dildo Feb 03 '25

Lets say they do succeed in pealing off enough Rs to successfully impeach him. Then he makes a public address from the WH telling congress to fuck themselves. Then what?

2

u/sjj342 Feb 03 '25

If there's votes for impeachment out of the House he's definitely removed by the Senate

Getting Rs to impeachment is the hard part

1

u/the_friendly_dildo Feb 03 '25

How do you do the "remove" part?

2

u/sjj342 Feb 03 '25

The rhetorical being he stages a coup with right wing paramilitaries, which I suppose is possible but they would get trounced unless a lot of military defects

2

u/readit-somewhere Feb 03 '25

A writ of mandamus issued by a court of jurisdiction

5

u/glittervector Feb 03 '25

So a piece of paper?

2

u/readit-somewhere Feb 04 '25

Worked in Marbury v. Madison

2

u/glittervector Feb 04 '25

Yeah. When people had respect for courts, other citizens, and the rule of law. I’m not sure we’ve got all those going for us now.

3

u/qalpi Feb 03 '25

Who would enforce that 

1

u/readit-somewhere Feb 04 '25

Who did it in Marbury v. Madison?

2

u/vxicepickxv Feb 03 '25

Which branch is supposed to enforce the law?

1

u/sokuyari99 Feb 03 '25

Like hopping on a Koopa

1

u/EastonMetsGuy Feb 03 '25

Might be time to as a wholesale group, consult that second amendment we got over there

1

u/Ok-Macaroon2170 Feb 03 '25 edited Feb 03 '25

I seen this guy fold his hands together and close his eyes. That work?

1

u/mOdQuArK Feb 03 '25

Contempt of court into jail for anyone that tries to ignore the Court Order. Trump might be immune due to being the President, but no one following his orders are.

Actually, do federal pardons cover contempt of court, given that they're initiated through the judicial branch instead of the executive?

And if he pardons one contempt of court charge, could the judge just keep issuing new ones (the equivalent of a government official childhood slap fight)?

1

u/beatlefreak909 Feb 03 '25

Isn’t THIS what the conservatives say the 2nd Amendment is for?

1

u/MrBleedinggums Feb 04 '25

Same way we stopped any other terrorist. 2 to the back, one in the head.